From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 From: kd4e Subject: Re: Take ACER Off your Linux-Friendly List Date: Wed, 29 Jul 2009 22:55:14 -0500 Message-ID: <4A7119A2.9030709@kd4e.com> References: <4A710CCA.7000907@kd4e.com> Reply-To: doc@kd4e.com Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Return-path: In-Reply-To: Sender: linux-hams-owner@vger.kernel.org List-ID: Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"; format="flowed" To: "Curt, WE7U" Cc: Linux Hams , ChristianHams@yahoogroups.com, ham-computers , Ham-Linux Actually, I have done those things, no thanks of any sort to Acer whose policy is obviously to discourage Linux usage. It would have been easy for Acer to make the identity of their wireless nic and Bluetooth easily accessible to Linux - even if they did not provide a driver - though they should have provided a Linux driver. (How hard can that be?) Instead, unlike other computers and wireless nics theirs is almost "invisible" to Linux. I have four laptops and one desktop here at the moment - only the Acer is this Linux-unfriendly. If it is not deliberate it is is gross incompetence. Volunteers write Linux drivers and corporations cannot? Sigh. Finding and adapting drivers on your own time for hardware sold for profit by a corporation is ones choice - holding Acer accountable for being Linux-unfriendly may encourage them to take a new look. I will probably return the Acer later in the week and instead buy a Samsung or Toshiba. The choices of manufacturers need to have consequences, or else they will not learn. > Curt, WE7U wrote: > On Wed, 29 Jul 2009, kd4e wrote: > >> Take ACER Off your Linux-Friendly List. >> >> Their Acer Aspire 5535 laptop locks-out the wireless modem >> and Blue tooth from any access unless a MS version of window >> is installed. > > The correct wording might be something like: The Linux I installed > doesn't appear to support the wireless modem or bluetooth. It > doesn't mean that the laptop locks-out those device unless MS > drivers are installed. It just means that your drivers you're using > now, or the configuration for the drivers you're using now, doesn't > appear to work for you. > > Have you tried Google for "acer aspire 5535 wireless"? I get quite > a few hits on that. You might find something of interest that would > work, as in changing drivers, changing your driver settings, or > installing a different version or brand of Linux. > > Wireless and portable devices are often the hardest to get every > little thing working on under Linux. Manufacturers often take > shortcuts in the hardware and/or change the circuit ever so slightly > compared to desktop units. Often drivers don't handle these > differences unless some driver author specifically targets that > device. > > Good luck! > > >> See Acer's "tough luck for you" reply below. > > That sort of reply is normal for any company, sorry to tell you. It > just means they don't have people hired and trained to support other > configurations than what they ship. I'm surprised that it's a > surprise to you. > -- Thanks! & 73, doc, KD4E FS/Swap/Wanted: http://kd4e.com/swapn.html Free OS : http://www.PuppyLinux.com Personal: http://kd4e.com |_|___|_| | | & | | /\ {| / \ {| / \ {| / @ \ {| | |~_|~~~~| | -| | | ============\ # KD4E Have an http://ultrafidian.com day!